A Rose By Any Other Name Would Smell As Sweet
by carryallthisbrokenbone
Summary: Silver's in trouble, big trouble. But, Rose is here to help. SilverxOC


"I love you..." He whispered, pulling me into a tight embrace. This wasn't how it was supposed to end. I wasn't supposed to be standing in a court room, refusing to let go of the love of my life as they take him away and lock him up for nothing. He did not a single wrong in his lifetime. Okay, maybe that was a bit of a lie, but close enough. He had stolen a pokémon from Professor Elm's lab... and he did attack me once, though I have reason to believe it was a mistake. It wasn't his fault he was born into an unloving family. It wasn't his fault he just happened to be closed up. Perhaps if he'd been more open in his lifetime, we wouldn't be where we are today. He was innocent, and I wasn't going to let them tell me otherwise.

It all started about two years ago...

_"Silver, what are you doing?" I shrieked, feeling his hands covering my bright blue eyes as he practically dragged me over to, well, wherever it was he was taking me. _

_"Just shut up." He grumbled, causing me to let out a muffled giggle. I reached up and tugged on his hands, but he wouldn't budge. He already knew what was coming before I even got the chance. "Don't you dare lick my hand." _

_"Awh... You ruin all the fun..." I pouted, sighing dramatically. He breathed deeply, showing clear signs of annoyance, which only made me giggle further. "Seriously, Silver. Where are you taking me?" _

_"Do you not trust me at all?" I couldn't see it, but I knew he'd have that smirk on his lips. _

_"Yeah, just... I... I don't know?" I stumbled over my words - and my feet. I stumbled, managing to slip and fall flat on my face. Silver bit his lip, desperate not to laugh._

_"You realise I'm not going to help you up, right?" He chuckled, as I held up my hand for support. I grunted, __trying to stand up, but being unsuccessful and tumbling straight back down__. _

_Although this time, I - somehow - rolled straight into the lake nearby, only, when I was under the water, realising that I can't actually swim. I never learnt too, because well, I was afraid. _

_I remembered telling Silver this, and wondered, as my life seemingly came to an end, if he remembered._

_Turns out, he did. _

_Thankfully, or I would be dead._

_He lay me down gently beside the calm looking lake, mumbling to himself. He tilted my head up as I coughed out lake water and began to attempt at regular breathing. He sighed, taking off his jacket, and wrapping it around my cold and shivering body, sitting me up slightly with his hand. _

_"I knew you'd end up doing something stupid like this." He grumbled. "I thought it'd be a nice birthday present bringing you to the lake, but no, you managed somehow to almost die." He seemed to be talking to himself more than me, though I could hear him perfectly. _

_"Hey, hey..." I mumbled through my breath. "Take your jacket back; you'll freeze." He sighed._

_"And you'll die; I'm pretty sure I'll be fine." He snapped bluntly. He shivered as he shuffled to fit the jacket tighter around me, though simply pretended like it had never happened. We were both soaked from head to toe, due to my clumsiness and Silver's sudden heroic change in attitude. I took this moment to, I guess, _observe _him. Without his jacket - which honestly, I had never seen him without in all the years I had known him - he showed off a pair of strong, but not unhealthily, muscular, arms, which paired with his loose fitting plain black t-shirt, looked, well, _great_. His long red hair also looked more appealing than usual when soaked through and sticking to the sides of his structured face. My hands itched to reach out and push it back, running my fingers through it and getting lost in the moment... I snapped myself back to reality, but I just kept going back into Silver Land. I watched as he leant over me, adjusting himself so it didn't look inappropriate to anyone passing by - Silver was always very fussy about things like that. He never liked showing emotion, or letting people believe he had friends, though he knew he had them in Ethan, Lyra, Kris and I. I stared back up into his stone grey eyes, though his face void of emotion; those two simple pools were filled with worry and compassion._

_"My belt." I commanded, my voice though barely above a whisper. He looked at me, raising clearly not amused eyebrow. "First pokeball from the left." I stuttered. Cautiously, he reached down and released the confused Typhlosion from inside. _

_"You actually had a good idea." He mused. I rolled my eyes. _

_"Ty, come and keep Silver warm." I instructed. Typhlosion didn't look impressed, however, he still obeyed, curling up behind Silver and sharing his unlimited heat. Silver looked over at me wide eyed._

_"Rose, you're going to freeze." He actually just addressed me by my real name. _

_"What happened to 'Baka'?" I grumbled._

_"I'm sorry, Baka, shall I continue to call you Baka? You like Baka, don't you, Baka?" He smirked. I groaned, resting my head on my knees, which I was currently hugging close to my chest. "Rose, come and sit with me." He blurted after a short, painful, silence. I gawped over at him, causing a ghost of a smile to appear on his suddenly appealing lips. "Don't just sit there and stare at me, Baka. Come here." He growled. A huge grin formed on my face as I crawled over to him, sitting beside him. Close enough to feel the warmth from Typhlosion, but not close enough to break his comfort zone rules. Oh yes. When we met, Silver set boundaries. I must stay at least a metre away from him at all times - a metre and a half if possible. He sighed, giving me a look that clearly stated that he was annoyed with me. I got that a lot. _

_"What now?" I complained. _

_"I'm almost certain that I said '_with _me', not, 'over the other side of the lake miles away from me'." He snapped, leaving me only to copy his sigh and shuffle over to sit next to him. _

_"I thought we established you don't enjoy people invading your personal space." I mumbled, head resting back on my knees where it was before. _

_"Well, we're both freezing and surely we will warm up quicker if we sat together. Also, it's your birthday. You could punch me and- Well, no, you couldn't." He mused. "Oh, and that was two years ago, Baka, I'm not the same as I was back then." He finished with a scoff. I turned to face him, before his eyes met mine again and I shied away. _

_"Aren't you?" I mumbled. _

_"No." He growled. "What would make you think that?" He seemed angry - but then, when wasn't he?_

_"It's not a bad thing." I reassured. "You used to be very closed up and even now, after three years, I still can't figure you out sometimes." I shrugged. "I guess you've opened up a little... Like when you saved me from the lake, and I saw worry in your eyes..." I trailed off there, feeling a deep flush come over my cheeks the colour of Silver's hair. He rolled his eyes and looked away, turning back after a short silence._

_"Showing emotions means being vulnerable." He muttered._

_"Then maybe being vulnerable isn't a bad thing." I retorted with a roll of the eyes. "I'm a very optimistic person, and I show it. I might be easily upset, but once I'm back to happy again, everything's fine." I smiled, laughing softly. "I'm not saying you should be like me. Arceus, that would be weird... not to mention completely wrong, but, maybe you should trust people a little more... You know Kris, Lyra and Ethan would never let anyone hurt you _too _badly." I chuckled. I swear I saw the faintest of smiles on his face before he lowered his head, his crimson hair blocking my gorgeous view. _

_"What about you?" He mumbled. I blushed scarlet, though managed to control myself._

_"Me neither. I'd _never _let _any _harm come to you. For as long as I live." I promised, putting my hand over his. To my surprise, he smiled at me. Though only tiny, and seemingly having a hint of sadness hidden deep inside it, it was still a smile, and over the two years, I'd never had that. "I like your smile." I blurted. He looked away. "Awh, don't look away..." I complained. _

_"Just shut up for two minutes and enjoy the view." I hadn't realised what he was talking about until he gently leant backwards, his hand still clasped in mine, and rested his head against Typhlosion, who was softly asleep behind us. _

_"Wow..." I whispered. I also hadn't noticed that it was darker than when we first got here. The stars were just starting to come out, and the sky was trapped in a beautiful sunset like nothing you'd ever seen before. Magical, it was. Not as magical though, as the smile I saw plastered on Silver's face when I turned to look at his reaction. He was simple minded deep down. A simple, but magnificent, sunset and he was smiling. Yet, winning pretty much every pokémon battle against me, and just a smirk. I smiled brightly back, his own contagious. Suddenly, I felt his strong hand shuffle underneath mine, and feeling embarrassed, I proceeded to retract my shaky hand. However, before I even got an inch away, Silver had retaken control of my hands, intertwining our fingers and putting my hand back where it originally started. I wasn't entirely sure if he was conscious of it, but he also seemed to be running his rough thumb against my skin, sending Thundershocks through my body. _

_We sat by for hours and watched the sunset, eventually, falling asleep. Little did I know that when I woke up, Silver would be comfortably snoozing on my shoulder. Typhlosion still out of her pokéball behind us was also far away in Dream Land, leaving just myself to watch the sunrise. I rested my head against his, our hands still clasped together._

That was when I realised I liked him more than just... Silver. After that, we spent a lot of time together. We travelled together - seen as I refused to let him travel alone, and he didn't want to be constantly around neither Kris or Ethan. He had claimed it was because of their overly optimistic and irritating personalities, but I was just the same. I didn't question it, though, that meant less time with Silver.

But now, I was losing all that.

In an instant.

If I'd have been one second later, I'd have been too late.

"Wait!" All the heads in the courtroom turned to me. I was visibly unappealing at the point, tear stained cheeks and lion hair from frustratingly running my fingers viciously through it. "You can't take him away..." I pleaded. I heard Silver sigh from across the room, causing me to spin round to face him. His beautiful features were cloaked in sorrow and misery, not to mention worry. Worry that I was going to be a Baka and get myself into trouble as well as him. Not that I cared, at least we'd be together. Even if it was in prison.

"Rose, I'm sorry, but I have to go." He tried to reason with me, make me feel better, but it wasn't working. The more he said it, the more I cried; the more I wanted him to stay.

"But-"

"Rose." He interrupted sternly. "There's nothing you can do." He looked away, a tsunami of tears pouring down my stiff cheeks and being furiously wiped away with my sleeve.

"But you didn't do anything!" I spun to face the judge, and though I wasn't really thinking it through at the time, I made a stupid mistake. "What evidence do you actually have against him?"

"Rose." Silver growled from no more than five metres away. "Shut up, Baka, or you'll just end up in the same place as me." He warned. I gave him a look that clearly showed him I didn't think he was being serious; that I would actually let them take him away for absolutely nothing.

"I don't care, Silver. If they lock me up too, then fair play. At least I'll be with you." I admitted, pushing the hair out of my face.

"Rose, stop talking like that! You wouldn't be able to handle it. It'd damage you. You'd lose your spark." He fought; and though he raised a valid point, just like I said before, I didn't care.

"And you shut up trying to stop me." I snapped, pointing a stern finger at him before calmly turning back to the judge. "I'd like to ask some questions, and possibly raise some points." I offered. "If, that is, that's okay with you, Sir."

"Baka, what the heck do you think you're doing?" Silver hissed. I ignored him for the time being, right now, instead of arguing with him, I had to save him.

"Sure, why not." The judge shrugged lazily, waving his hand for me to begin.

"May I raise the point that I actually have absolutely no knowledge whatsoever of law-"

"If you don't, how do you expect to be successful?" Snapped the lady who had originally contacted the court about seeing a red-haired boy around the areas of Team Rocket activity during their comeback four years ago. She had noted seeing him around, and almost always being led to trouble.

"If you don't mind, Ma'am. I'll be the one asking the questions." I retorted, my hands shoved into my pockets. "I have, however, watched _a lot _of detective shows." I mumbled to the judge, who simply laughed. I inwardly smiled; getting the judge to like me is a good start.

"You can't be serious. She's just a kid. She-" There was a ear-shattering bang, as the judge slammed his fist against the table as a solution to silencing the noisy courtroom.

"Excuse me, but the girl asked for a chance to speak; let her speak." He said calmly, relaxing back into his, probably extremely comfortable, chair. "Continue." He smiled, after a short silence.

"Now." I started. "If you're going to be _grown up _about this, then how about we start with an easy one, ey?" I grinned at the woman, who seemed to be throwing a very immature hissy fit. "Why, in the first place, did you think to contact anyone about Silver?" I asked. She clenched her jaw, unwilling to answer to a kid, though she knew she would have to. I could already see Silver's disapproving look in my peripheral vision, which only caused me to grin further.

"Wouldn't you call if you say a strange kid with long red hair hanging about? I followed him and he was heading towards the Team Rocket Headquarters. That lead me to believe he was one of them, seen as he looks like one." She hissed back. I dramatically wiped the spit from my cheek that she had just sprayed, taking a much needed step back and putting my hands behind my back.

"But," I started, pacing, "surely, you shouldn't have followed him in the first place?"

"I thought he looked suspicious." She countered. I slammed my hands down onto the table.

"And you thought this because he wears black and has long hair, am I correct?" I snapped. "Surely that's stereotyping, labeling, heck, I may even call it branding. That man over there has longish hair, is he a member of Team Rocket too?"

"Miss, please stand back." The judge said warily. I sighed, taking a step back from the woman, who now looked a little frightened beneath her show of dramatic confidence.

"No." She simply stated with a shrug.

"Oh, but how can you be sure?" I replied with a grin. "Just because he appears to be a respectable gentlemen, does not mean that he is." I began pacing again, though my legs felt they could give way at any moment. The fact that Silver's future was resting on my knowledge of detective television shows was rather unnerving.

"I know that man personally." She smirked. I raised an eyebrow, shrugging.

"Fair play to you, but I know Silver personally, and I can _guarantee _that he is perfectly innocent." I smiled sweetly back at the woman before pausing for a moment. "In fact, I think I might just tell you a little story." I grinned, the memories flooding back to me. "We were thirteen. Just after I'd realised I had feelings for the red head..."

_"What the heck are you doing here?" I'd managed to sneak into Team Rocket's Headquarters, get a uniform over my usual clothes, and pass a bunch of grunts without suspicion. _

_However, I couldn't get past Silver, who had managed to waltz on in here in his casual clothes with his hair all over the place and a flustered, angry face. _

_"How did you recognise me?" I gasped before being pulled by my wrist behind a wall and having a hand cover my mouth tightly. A pair of grunts passed by, animatedly chatting between themselves. Once they were gone, Silver let out a long sigh, releasing me and relaxing. _

_"You're too obvious, Baka." He muttered. I rolled my eyes._

_"Oh, and attacking me and hiding behind a wall isn't?" I retorted with a smirk. He grunted. I rested my head against his chest, groaning. "We're stuck now, idiot." I pointed out, making him growl something incoherent. _

_"You should go." He suggested - in fact, it was more of an order. But then again, when have I ever done anything Silver asks me to? _

_"You and I both know I'm not leaving." I replied calmly, though Silver wasn't taking the whole situation the same as I was._

_"You leave now, or I will forcefully take you out there and lock you up somewhere." He growled. I let out a low sigh, thinking it over. Is he actually serious? Does he _actually _think that I will leave him here? _

_"Silver, I'm not leaving you to do this on your own." I replied, getting slightly angry myself. "What is your problem with me being here?"_

_"It's not safe, and I hate you in that stupid ridiculous costume. Team Rocket are pathetic excuses for people, and they don't deserve to even breathe the same air as you do." He growled, peeking round the corner before clamping his hand back over my mouth. Two more grunts wandered past, though in suspicious silence, rather than happily talking like the previous pair. Once they'd past, I clawed at Silver's hand, and eventually, he loosened his grip. _

_"I'll be fine. I know they're not nice people, but I won't leave you here on your own and-"_

_"They're not nice people? They're worse than that! These thugs are horrible, hideous people and they-" He was cut off by the roar of a close by pokémon. I panicked._

_"Have found us." I finished with a whisper. He pulled a pokéball from his pocket - assumingly Feraligatr. The large__,__ blue water type emerged from the ball, Silver following him, though only after telling me to stay put._

_Like I was going to listen? _

_I jumped out behind him, gripping onto one of my own pokéballs. Two Rocket grunts were behind him that he hadn't noticed. He stepped back at the same time as me, causing us to back into each other. _

_"Baka... You never listen to me..." He grumbled, turning back to face the two grunts smirking straight at him._

_"You know me too well." I grinned, releasing Typhlosion - who had taken a sudden liking to Silver. _

_"Typhlosion!" _

_"Feraligatr!" We called in unison. The two fully evolved pokémon let off strong attacks, knocking out the pairs of measly Zubat that blocked our way. I could practically feel the confidence radiating off of Silver, though I won't deny that it gave me a little confidence boost too. "You and Typhlosion need to go." He demanded, spinning me round and pushing me lightly in the direction of the exit. I scoffed._

_"I already said, Silvie. I'm not leaving you!" I called in a sing-song voice that not even Kris could match. Kris was very musically talented._

_"Don't call me that." He growled. "And you have to! It's not safe, and I don't want you associating with these low-life, unintelligent, wastes of life-forms." I shot him a knowingly raised eyebrow. He already knew that whatever he told me to do, I wouldn't do it, so I didn't know why he was bothering to argue with me. I almost always won. "Fine." He snapped, after a short silence. "Come with me then." I grinned, however, he had more to say. "But," he added. "You must stay behind me at all times, and watch_ _out for yourself, okay? I don't want you getting hurt because of me." A smile broke out on my lips as I tackled him in a hug from behind as he was walking away. He let out a bored sigh, though he didn't push me off or complain. I eventually let go, letting out my own sigh - though of content. I smiled up at him when he looked back at me, before nodding in reply to his own, following him deep into Team Rocket's Headquarters. _

_We managed to get right up to the head office, facing off with none other than Giovanni, who apparently, expected us. Silver didn't take a liking to this fact and decided that his main priority was to keep me as far away from the man, even if that meant standing on my feet at least twelve times in the process. He had seemed very... angry, in those few short minutes, shouting and glaring like I'd never seen him before. I knew he was angry natured, but I'd never seen him this bad. It was like he knew this man personally before now._

_"Silver, what's going on?" I asked, tugging on his arm in an attempt to calm him down._

_"Shut up, Baka." He grunted back, "and for once, _please _do what I say." He complained quietly, not once taking his eyes off Giovanni. I'll admit, in person, he's a lot scarier than they make out, and believe you me, they make it out that he's some sort of fire breathing dragon type that could rip the universe into a thousand pieces with its tail. One word from Giovanni and he could have the entire region in panic. _

_"Silver-" I began to speak again, but Giovanni's smirk had put me off. I didn't want to speak while he was looking at me like that. It was like when I first met Silver, and I caught him taking Totodile. He gave me the coldest stare and told me to 'get lost, Baka'. But he softened, though I wasn't expecting the leader of Team Rocket too... It would be ideal if he did. _

_"When were you going to... introduce me, _son_?" Giovanni smirked. My head slowly raised to look at the owner of the arm I was currently clinging onto for dear life. Silver was positively fuming. His hands were clenched in tight fists, causing his knuckles to turn to a clear white. I could feel the tense muscles through his jacket and I could guarantee that his eyes were glazing over with intense anger. Forgetting the sudden news, all I wanted was for Silver to calm down, so instead, I gently slid my hand down his arm and pried apart his fingers, slipping mine in between. In an instant, he turned to face me, that angry look still on his face, clearly warning me not to get in the way. I shook my head._

_"I don't care." I whispered. His expression slowly softened; his muscles relaxing and his hand shuffling in mine to a more comfortable position. _

_"Silver, why haven't you introduced us before?" Giovanni said, a menacing smile on his lips. Silver glared back over at him, the anger rising back into him. I tightened my grip on his hand, calming the visual shaking of Silver's body. _

_"Because you're a sick, twisted, disgusting man." Silver growled, "And I want nothing to do with you and your stupid, wasteful organisation; and neither does Rose." _

_"That's a pretty name for a girl..." He mused. "Shame it's over before it even began." Before I could even attempt to analyse what he'd just said, he let out a dark chuckle and pressed a large button on his desk. The room filled with thick, black smoke, and soon, the place was being evacuated. _

_I never even felt the explosion, or the flames. _

_The last thing I remembered before the loud bangs and screams of the townspeople, was Silver and I returning our pokémon to the safety of their pokéballs. _

_I had stumbled to my feet, unsuccessful in my lone attempts, and having to have Silver help me up. He looked bruised and battered, cuts scattered across his face - many deep enough to bleed. His hair was sticking out in awful directions, and his jacket tattered and torn. I shot him a weak smile before letting the darkness take me over. _

_When I woke up, I was in some sort of infirmary. The walls were white, the bed was white; everything was white. For a minute, I thought I was dead. That was until I saw the mess of red hair at my bedside. Silver had fallen asleep in the chair - which was also white - beside me, snoring ever so softly in his sleep. I smiled to myself; he must've brought me here. I took this time of silence to think things over. Giovanni was Silver's father, so that meant, if Giovanni was to mysteriously disappear - or murdered, however you wanted to put it - then, by blood, Silver would be the leader of Team Rocket. However, due to Silver's intense and burning hatred of Team Rocket, I imagine his first order would be to disband and kiss the organisation goodbye. The fact he was the son of a mass criminal, somehow didn't shake me. Sure, it was kind of unnerving, but Silver wasn't anything like Giovanni. He wasn't cruel, and cold hearted. I mean, he brought me here, didn't he? And stayed! He was sweet... deep, _deep _down inside..._

"...and when he woke up, do you know what he said?" I smiled to myself, thinking back to those, simpler, times. "He turned to me and said 'Baka, if it wasn't for me you'd be dead. I think I deserve a thank you at least'." I chuckled, "not a 'I'm so glad you're okay!' or 'I'm glad I saved you'. No. The perfect Silver response." I sighed, inwardly smiling, though she simply raised an eyebrow.

"And what does that have to do with the case? You just proved me right!" She smirked.

"Oh, but did I?" I countered, leaning against the old-fashioned, wooden table. "I basically just explained to you my first encounter with Silver and Giovanni together. I described the intense hatred Silver has for the disgusting organisation, and how he didn't want _me_, of all the happy, chirpy people in the world, to be damaged by their attitudes." I began pacing again; it seemed very therapeutic in this situation. "Yet, you still insist that Silver is a part of Team Rocket."

"Just because he may not like the organisation, doesn't mean that he hasn't done wrong." She replied, a cocky smirk on her fully beautified lips. I smiled sweetly.

"He has done wrong; I for one can agree with that, but does that necessarily mean that _everything_ he has done wrong is punishable?" I looked over at him, to see a ghost of a smile on his lips from the memories, but still that look of agonizing worry flooded his silver eyes. I sent him a wink, before turning back to face the woman, who was now becoming shaky. "I personally believe that though, yes, Silver has done wrong in his life, but that's needless to say that he hasn't suffered the consequences, or rather, countered the wrongs with rights." I shrugged. "Everyone makes mistakes, right?"

"Of course, but stealing a pokémon isn't a mistake. It's a crime, and he should be punished!" I smiled.

"I agree; and Silver _has _been punished, in fact, he repaid Professor Elm for his wrong doing..."

_"Silver, what the heck are you doing here? You know Professor Elm is going to be mad." I panicked. We were ten, and Cyndaquil had recently evolved into Quilava around the same time Totodile had evolved into Croconaw. Silver narrowed his child-like eyes at me._

_"I came back to repay him, Baka." He insulted, leaving me behind, gawping at his retreating back._

_"Wait!" I called, running to catch up with him. "What do you mean, repay?" He sighed, but continued anyway._

_"I heard that Team Rocket were planning on attacking the lab, and taking the pokémon he has stored there. I was going to protect the lab." He explained, my young mind processing the information. I shot him a confused look._

_"But how do you expect to do that on your own?" I asked, my voice considerably higher than any other girl my age. My voice was just unfortunate, I guess. However, I loved it, because Silver hated it. _

_"Yes." He shrugged simply. I gasped._

_"You can't beat Team Rocket all on your own!" I grinned, getting an idea. "I'll come with you!" _

_"No." He said sternly._

_"Why not?" I pouted, stopping him from walking away yet again. He glared at me, pushing the hair out of his face and angrily crossing his arms over his chest._

_"Because you'll just get in the way, and I can do this myself." _

_"No, you can't!" I sang happily, a smirk on my lips. "You _need _me to help you." I teased. He grunted at me, shoving me out the way as he made his way to the lab. Suddenly, we both heard a woman's scream coming from that very direction, and in an instant, the two of us had taken off in sprint towards the building. Rushing in through the wide open doors, Silver and I both reached for our pokéballs in turn, releasing our newly evolved pokémon for battle. Both looked ready for whatever came their way, and that they were. Battling through the floods of poison types, we eventually reached Professor Elm, who was doing the best he could to protect the pokémon. _

_It was almost a miracle when Silver teamed up with me to protect them. I couldn't quite believe it at first. _

_We defeated them all, regardless, returning our well-battled pokémon and helping Professor Elm to his feet._

_"Professor, I'm... I'm err... I..." Silver stuttered over his words, and though we'd only known each other for almost a year, and I barely saw him, I already knew that he didn't like apologising or admitting his mistakes._

_"He says he's sorry for stealing the pokémon." I grinned, happily dancing beside the pair. Professor Elm smiled in return._

_"That's fine, kid. I would've given you one if you'd simply asked, but I see that you've trained him well, and you, Rose." Professor Elm smiled widely as he lead us out of the lab. "How long are you staying?" _

_"Not too long, I've got to keep moving!" I grinned widely. _

_"Same here." Silver muttered. _

_"That's fine. I'm glad you came, though." He smiled. "If it wasn't for you two, who knows what'd have happened!" I stuck my tongue out at Silver, who simply narrowed his eyes at me. _

_Then he did something I never thought he'd do. _

_He laughed._

"His laugh was different; probably because I'd never heard it before." I shrugged, a grin on my lips. "But that laugh wasn't one of a criminal's. It was one of genuine kindness. One of friendship. I knew at that moment that although we never showed any signs of getting along or wanting to getting along; we were still friends. We still bumped into each other from time to time, and engaged in pokémon battles, and ultimately, did something only friends do; Had fun." I felt a smile begin to creep its way onto my face. I glanced over at the red haired beauty across the courtroom. He also had a small smile on his lips, his body relaxed. But then in an instant, all that was washed away by the voice of the crooked woman in front of me. His eyes were flooded back with that same worry, and though the smile remained on lips, it was one of reassurance, instead of the radiating happiness I had just seen.

"Is this getting anywhere?" She spat. I narrowed my eyes, losing my temper.

"What else do you want me to say?" I snapped, throwing my arms around me in a manner that clearly showed my intolerance and short temper. "Do you know what it's like to lose someone you hold close? Do you know what it's like to be in love? That dork over there is the love of my life regardless of what he may or may not have done. There is no way you can honestly say that you want two kids to live their lives sad and lonely because of your selfish actions to send away innocent people!" I screamed, crashing to the floor in tears. "There was once." I spoke after a short silence, my voice only just above a whisper. It was heard throughout the court room. "He used to quote Shakespeare to me. All the time. I'd never get any of it, and it'd usually just be simple lines from his plays and things. But then..."

_"Baka, what are you doing?" He grumbled, appearing in the mouth of the cave. I was taking shelter from the storm that's what I was doing... He calls me the idiot. His long red hair was drenched from head to toe, his jacket dripping at the bottom. _

_"I was taking shelter because of the storm." I replied simply, my voice a whisper._

_"Hey, are you okay?" My eyes widened. That didn't sound like the Silver I knew. I looked over at him, but I could barely see his face in the dim light of the cave. All I had was my small fire for light. "Baka." He muttered, pushing me for an answer. I shrugged; then realised he couldn't see me._

_"I'm fine." I mumbled. He shuffled around before sitting opposite me. The flames bounced off his wet skin as he shivered, hugging his clothes tight for extra warmth. _

_"You don't sound fine." He stated, his voice shaky. I slipped off my dry jacket, standing up onto my unstable legs, and walking over to him. Against his will, I pulled his wet jacket off his arms and slipped mine over his shoulders. "What are you doing?" _

_"Keeping you warm, idiot." I snapped back; okay, I was grumpy. I rolled my eyes, but a smile came over my lips when he snuggled into the jacket more. _

_"You'll freeze." He fought back. I shrugged._

_"You need it more than I do." He huffed, clambering to his feet and over to my weak body, sitting down beside me and resting his back against the cave's wall. He pulled the jacket from his shoulders, using it as a blanket to cover both of us. _

_"This way, neither of us will be cold." He smiled, yawning. _

_"You know, you've changed." I blurted, slapping my hand over my mouth when I realised how easily he could misinterpret my comment. _

_"Is that a good thing?" He asked calmly, yet again, causing me to gawp at him a little. He was being calm... That didn't happen often. _

_"Yeah." I mumbled, embarrassingly covering my face with my hands. I jumped out of my skin when he rested his head against my shoulder. Who was this and what has he done with Silver? That's what I want to know! I sighed. "Are you okay?" I asked softly. _

_"I'm fine, why?" He replied effortlessly. I rolled my eyes._

_"You're acting totally out of character." I pointed out. He shuffled his head._

_"Whatever, Baka." A grin spread out on my lips. There he was. "Why are you grinning like that? It's really unnerving." _

_"No reason." I quickly blurted. He sighed, placing his head gently back where it was. _

_It was silent for what felt like an eternity. I didn't even realise I'd shuffled to rest my own head on his; not until he moved to get more comfortable._

_"Shall I compare thee to a summer's day?" He started, catching me by surprise. His voice was soft and gentle as he spoke, a small visible smile on his lips. "Thou art more lovely and more temperate; rough winds do shake the darling buds of May, and summer's lease hath all too short a date," He continued, the smile growing. He shuffled again, this time becoming closer and wrapping one arm around mine. "Sometime too hot the eye of heaven shines, and often is his gold complexion dimm'd; and every fair from fair sometime declines, by chance or nature's changing course untrimm'd," He slid his hand into mine, intertwining our fingers and continuing his beautiful poem. I recognised it from somewhere, but I couldn't put my finger on it. Either way; it was beautiful. "But thy eternal summer shall not fade, nor lose possession of that fair thou ow'st; nor shall Death brag thou wander'st in his shade, when in eternal lines to time thou grow'st: so long as men can breathe or eyes can see, so long lives this, and this gives life to thee." He finished, taking a deep breath. "Sonnet 18, William Shakespeare." He smiled proudly. "Just for you." He snuggled his face into my shoulder and closed his eyes slowly. I exhaled a breath I didn't know I'd been holding. _

_"Wow, Silver." I breathed, looking over at his relaxed figure beside mine. "That was beautiful." _

_"Thanks, but it's not like I wrote it myself." He scoffed. I rolled my eyes._

_"Still!" I stammered. "Wow." I shuffled my hand in his hold, squeezing it slightly. "What's with the sudden show of emotions, ey?" I teased softly, resting my head against his._

_"I always quote Shakespeare to you." He replied confused. I grinned instantly._

_"You've never compared me to a summer's day." He shrugged, causing my head to move a little. _

_"It had to be done." I blinked a couple times. Did he really just say that? I must've been thinking aloud, as he grumbled back, "Yes, I did just say that, Baka." I let out a small chuckle, stroking his hand with my thumb._

_"Thank you." I whispered. He smiled._

_"Anytime." He replied, yawning. _

_"Tired?" _

_"Yes, no stop your talking and let me sleep." He snapped. I giggled childishly._

_"You're going to sleep next to me?" _

_"Why not." He shrugged. "In fact, c'mon." He stood up, our hands still clasped together. He pulled me to my feet and checked outside for the storm. It was still pretty bad, so we went back further into the cave. He hooked my jacket over his shoulder, and reached down to my belt. He pulled a pokéball and released a confused Typhlosion from inside. "Fancy keeping us warm, Ty?" He grinned. Sometimes, I worried that Typhlosion loved Silver more than me; and I wasn't overexaggerating. _

_"Ty!" He smiled back, curling into a ball and letting us sit beside him like we did what seemed to be a millennium ago by the lake. Silver pulled me down, almost sitting on him and snuggled into me. I didn't even care at the time that this was completely un-Silver-like. I just enjoyed the fact that the distance rules were obviously abolished. I could hold his hand or hug him, and I wouldn't get shoved to the ground. At least not when it was just us anyway. I managed to make myself comfortable in his hold, resting my head in the crook of his neck. I felt him smile. _

_That was single-handedly one of the most amazing moments of my life. _

_He actually smiled about being there with me. In a cave, in a manic storm, cuddling and falling asleep together. _

_It was bliss._

I sighed, the soft tears stinging my skin. I couldn't do this any longer. The more I thought about him, the less control I had over myself; the more I wanted him to stay. I couldn't bear to have him leave me. Not after everything we'd been through. I looked up at his shaking body across the room; I can't do it. The little sparkles of tears, begging to trickle down his pale cheeks broke me into two. He was in pain, and so was I. My tiny, fragile heart being torn in two. My child-like personality being put at the test of maturity; and I couldn't do it.

"Just... Just don't do it..." I whispered. "Please... I'll do anything..." I begged, crawling over to the woman's desk and using it to pick myself up off the floor, though my legs were weak, and I felt myself beginning to crash back down. "I'll do anything, if you just don't lock him away for something he hasn't done, please..." I cried, slamming my fist against the table. "I can't bear... I can't b-b-bear... I can't... I..." I couldn't even finish my sentence before breaking down. "Don't do this to me." I managed to croak out almost silently. I wasn't sure if she'd even heard me, but the shocked expression on her womanly features proved me wrong. "Do you have a husband? Or boyfriend?" I asked, my voice coming back, becoming a little more stable. She nodded nervously. "Imagine losing him." I blurted desperately. "Imagine him getting locked away for something he never even did." She looked down at the table sadly, bowing her head away from my angry glare. "It hurts, doesn't it?" I spat. "You're doing the exact same to me." I screamed. She instantly rose to her feet, smashing her hands against the table.

"It's always 'me me me' with you, isn't it?" She yelled back. I flinched.

"I'm _fifteen_, of course I'm a little self-centred!" I matched the volume of her voice, perhaps even beating it. She paused. "It's not about me, anyway! It's about wrongly sentencing Silver! Even if I wasn't in love with the red-head, I'd still defend him because he didn't do a single thing wrong!" She took a deep breath, flicking her hair back over her shoulder. "Think about that!" I spat. Before I could open my mouth again, the judge coughed to separate us, sending the room into a deafening silence.

"I think it's time we made a judgment." He announced.

I almost missed the moment he yelled out the result, smashing his gavel against the table.

"We find the defendant..." He had started; which was when I almost passed out from waiting. "Not guilty!"

That was the final judgment. He threw his gavel down and smiled proudly over at me. I smiled back before being enveloped in a pair of tight, shaking arms. I was lifted a little, but regardless, I threw my arms back around him in a tight embrace. He burrowed his face into my shoulder, whereas I ran my fingers through his messy hair.  
I could feel his heartbeat against mine; both beating wildly out of control. That wasn't what shook me the most; it was the pain in his voice.

"R-R-Rose..." He breathed, placing my feet gently back against the hard floor, his hug loosening an inch and his hands sliding up my back into my hair. "I-I-I-I can't b-believe you just d-did that..." He stuttered, almost unable to let go of my shaking, fragile body.

"I can't believe it worked..." I laughed softly, though he didn't seem to care.

"You silly Baka." He grumbled, snapping at me. "You could've got yourself into so much trouble. You could've been in there with me. Arceus, Rose. Never do anything like that again, you hear me?" Yet again, his grip tightened considerably, almost protectively. I sighed; I thought I'd done a good job...

"I thought you'd be pleased..." I mumbled sadly. He chuckled softly, pulling away and cupping my face in his surprisingly soft hands.

"I am. I am _so incredibly _proud of you... I just wish you wouldn't scare me like that." He breathed, wiping away the tears as they began running down my tired cheeks again. I didn't think I was capable of crying any more. I was fresh out of tears; I had to be. But I wasn't, I had plenty more to come, and so did Silver. His big, stone grey eyes flooding over and crying out into my shoulder. "I'm sorry!" He cried.

"I'm sorry too!" I blurted, laughing. "Let's never scare each other again, okay?" He nodded vigourously.

"_A _rose _by any other name would smell as sweet._" He smiled fondly, taking my hand in his. I smirked.

"Romeo And Juliet, William Shakespeare."

"That one was easy." He fought, causing a girlish giggle to escape from my lips, which were soon after seized by his own. It was short, but sweet. It was also, the first time he'd kissed me in front of people. He was very secretive and worrisome about showing affection in front of people, which is why I thrived for those times we had together alone. He could hold my hand and sit with me all night without question. I could taste his lips against mine, without him panicking about someone seeing us.

A wide smile suddenly came across his lips in a flash, as he bit his bottom lip.

_Beautiful human being. _

They were going to lock him away; away from me. I wouldn't get to see his perfect face, or tempting lips whenever we bumped into each other, or whenever we woke up in the morning. I think I would've missed that too much for my liking.

"I think it's home time." He laughed, stroking my cheek.

"Yours or mine?" I asked. He seemed to find this amusing, a humoured expression covering his features.

"I don't care."


End file.
